I’m testing out something new and wanted to bring you all along for the ride. I’ve started a daily learning experiment where I study new material each morning and then teach it back here to lock it in and spark better conversations inside the community. The goal is twofold: it helps me deepen my own understanding and gives all of us a chance to explore new ideas together. Some of what I’ll be diving into might sound a little weird at first it’s on the edge of where cellular medicine, physics, and performance meet but that’s exactly why I want to share it here. This is me getting my reps in, learning how to explain complex ideas simply so I can keep improving the way I teach and support everyone who trusts me with their health. Skool is officially in session and this is Day One.
Coherence is one of those concepts that sounds abstract until you feel it. Every living system, from a single cell to a full human being, depends on rhythm and timing. When that rhythm is in sync, energy flows efficiently, signals are clear, and the system performs at its best. In biology, this rhythm is called coherence. Inside your cells, coherence is the difference between energy being stored as ATP or lost as heat and inflammation.
Each mitochondrion operates like a small power plant. Its inner membrane holds a separation of charge about minus one hundred eighty millivolts that acts like the height difference of water behind a dam. This energy difference is the reason mitochondria can turn food and oxygen into usable fuel. Protons are pumped to one side of the membrane, building pressure, and when they flow back through the turbine-like ATP synthase, energy is released in a controlled, efficient way. If the membrane potential weakens, it’s like the dam lowering; water spills over without spinning the turbines, and you feel it as fatigue or slower recovery.
In training terms, imagine the smooth rhythm of a strong set of squats. At the start, your body and breath are synchronized. Energy moves cleanly, the movement feels effortless, and power output is high. As fatigue builds, you lose that rhythm. The burn you feel in your muscles is the result of protons accumulating faster than they can be cleared. The gradient across your mitochondrial membranes collapses, energy flow becomes noisy, and contraction efficiency drops. That sensation is coherence breaking down in real time.
When coherence is lost at the cellular level, electrons that were supposed to move smoothly through the mitochondrial complexes begin to leak. Instead of being captured to make ATP, they collide and form reactive oxygen species. The system becomes less efficient, more inflamed, and more prone to error. It’s the biological equivalent of a band where everyone keeps their own tempo—still making sound, but no longer making music.
Peptides such as SS-31, MOTS-c, and BPC-157 can help re-establish this coherence. SS-31 stabilizes the mitochondrial membrane and the lipid called cardiolipin, which keeps the “walls” of the dam strong. MOTS-c tunes energy sensors like AMPK, helping mitochondria adapt to energy demands without chaos. BPC-157 supports vascular and membrane repair, improving communication and oxygen delivery. These molecules don’t just make more energy they help cells make energy in rhythm again.
You can feel coherence directly. After doing a short breathing exercise, many people report a sensation of calm alertness or an easy openness in the body. This isn’t imagination; it’s physiology. Slow, controlled breathing balances the sympathetic and parasympathetic branches of the nervous system, lowers proton buildup, and allows the mitochondrial gradient to rebuild. The nervous system and mitochondria share the same language: rhythm. When you control one, you influence the other.
A simple way to experience this is through what I call “breath-battery calibration.” Sit or stand tall. Inhale through your nose for four seconds, hold for two, then exhale through your mouth for six to eight seconds. Do this for ten rounds. The long exhale clears excess carbon dioxide, lowering the acid load and helping mitochondria reset their voltage. Afterward, you might feel a quiet stillness or a mild tingling in your hands. That is coherence returning.
To deepen the effect, try moving with that rhythm. Do ten slow bodyweight squats or pushups, keeping the same 4-2-6 breathing pattern. The purpose isn’t effort; it’s synchronization. When breath and movement are in sync, you are literally training your cells to maintain order under load. Many people describe feeling lighter, taller, or more connected after only a few minutes. That sensation means your body is realigning its electrical, mechanical, and chemical rhythms.
I tried this practice myself and noticed that when my breathing and movement stayed in sync, I felt more open especially along my spine. The inhale was the hardest part to match. That’s often because the inhale activates the sympathetic system, the body’s alertness response. If it’s hard to control, it may mean you’re spending too much time in a fight-or-flight state. Over time, as the nervous system rebalances, the inhale becomes smoother, and coherence lasts longer.
The practical takeaway is that coherence isn’t something abstract. It’s measurable, trainable, and felt. It’s the foundation of recovery and focus. When the mitochondrial gradient is strong and coherent, energy is not only produced efficiently but also directed intelligently. When coherence falls apart, energy is still made, but it’s scattered, reactive, and hard to harness.
Here’s how you can apply this lesson today:Step one: spend two minutes doing the breath-battery calibration four-second inhale, two-second hold, six- to eight-second exhale.Step two: immediately follow with two minutes of slow, rhythmic squats or pushups, staying with that same breathing pattern.Step three: take one minute to notice how you feel. Write one short sentence that begins, “When my breathing and movement stayed in rhythm, I felt…”
That simple reflection helps your nervous system encode the state you want to return to. Each time you do it, you strengthen the feedback loop between attention, breath, and energy efficiency.
By practicing coherence deliberately, you start to experience energy not as something random that comes and goes, but as something you can tune. Over time, the difference becomes clear: your recovery improves, focus sharpens, and even your mood becomes steadier. You are teaching your biology to stay synchronized under stress.
Quiz question for the community:When mitochondrial coherence decreases, what is the main energetic consequence?
I’ll post the answer tomorrow along with the next lesson, “Entropy vs Information: The Currency of Adaptation.”